In case you haven't heard, there's a big NFL football game on today. That's either great news, if you're a fan, or cause to grumble, because all your favorite shows are taking the night off.
Why reruns? Maybe as many as 120 million Americans will be watching the Super Bowl. An average of 114.4 million tuned in last year, making it the most-watched TV event in U.S. history. An astounding 71 percent of all the TVs turned on at the time were tuned to the Super Bowl.
That's why the networks aren't "wasting" a fresh episode up against the bowl game.
Kickoff for Super Bowl 50 is 5:30 p.m. today on CBS, and the game is scheduled to run until 9 p.m. (probably later), followed by a special early edition of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, which takes us up to the local news.
Don't care about football? Be sure to check out today's TV Week insert for some furry and finny alternative viewing suggestions.
NFL traditionalists have groused because the usual Roman numerals have been dropped for Super Bowl 50. If tradition had been followed, it would have been Super Bowl L. What's wrong with that?
CBS Sports quotes NFL creative director Shandon Melvin as saying, "L immediately brought up so many negative connotations." Besides, L (as opposed to X or V), was "very asymmetrical."
Never fear, it'll return to its Roman numeral ways -- Super Bowl LI -- next year.
No. 50 should be an exciting match-up. Here's some trivia:
• Cam Newton will hit the trifecta if his Panthers win tonight. Ponder this: Newton would be the first quarterback to have won a national championship in college (Auburn, 2010 season), the Heisman Trophy and a Super Bowl.
Not that we're counting, but Newton also won a national junior college title with Blinn College in 2009.
• If Peyton Manning wins, he'll be the oldest winning quarterback (39) in Super Bowl history. John Elway won Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999 as a 38-year-old.
• The age difference between Cam Newton (at 26) and Manning is 13 years and 48 days. It's the widest margin between starting quarterbacks in Super Bowl history.
• The cost for a 30-second commercial during Super Bowl I was $42,500. The same spot will cost almost $5 million today.
• Ten of the last 11 Super Bowl winners were wearing white uniforms. The Broncos will be wearing white today.
• Pizza delivery franchises typically see their sales double on game day. Domino's predicts 11 million pies will be consumed during the game.
• Americans will swig almost 325 million gallons of beer, eat 4,000 tons of popcorn, 14,000 tons of chips and 5,000 pounds of hot dogs during the game. An average of 1,200 calories of snacks will be consumed.
• Not surprisingly, six percent of Americans will call in sick Monday.
• Each Super Bowl Lombardi trophy is handcrafted by Tiffany & Co., takes four months to make and is valued at $12,500.
• Finally, almost everybody is hoping for a good game. However, 1990's Super Bowl XXIV was the biggest snore so far. Joe Montana and his 49ers crushed the Denver Broncos 55-10.
That's enough for now. But few viewers will be waiting until 5:30 to tune in. True fans have to get properly warmed up. CBS has us covered. Here's the network schedule for today.
10 a.m.: Super Bowl 50: Before They Were Pros. NFL players and legends go back to the communities that helped shape them.
11 a.m.: Road to the Super Bowl. A look back at the greatest sights and sounds of the 2015 NFL season.
Noon: Phil Simms All-Iron Team: Super Bowl Edition. Simms looks back at the evolution of the Super Bowl and highlights a player or coach from each decade who represents what the Super Bowl was about at that time.
1 p.m.: Super Bowl Today. Live from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. Highlights include Gayle King's interview with President Barack and first lady Michelle Obama.
5 p.m.: Kickoff Show. Along with musical performances, the national anthem and team introductions, there will be a special tribute to Super Bowl MVPs.
5:30 p.m.: Super Bowl 50. Carolina Panthers vs. Denver Broncos. It's the old man vs. the young gun as Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning goes for his second Super Bowl title. Meanwhile, Cam Newton leads the Panthers into the second Super Bowl in franchise history.
• Castle. For those getting antsy about when Castle will return to ABC, the second half of Season 8 debuts at 9 p.m. Monday. It had been delayed.
The episode deals with "the unexpectedly dangerous world of competitive a capella." There's a body and Castle and Beckett (Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic) are on the case.
The guest cast includes High School Musical star Corbin Bleu.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:
mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Style on 02/07/2016